Air Charters Fly To Internet
<B> Air Charters Fly To Internet</B>
By David Jonas
Air charter companies serving the niche market for corporations looking to provide executives with high-touch service or to find alternatives to commercial airlines are going electronic. In an attempt to exploit their niche, which may be widening in this age of skyrocketing airfares and increasing delays, a few charter companies have established an online presence giving their customers instant access to thousands of aircraft.
San Francisco-based AirCharter.com is one of the newest of these nationwide online real-time air charter reservations systems. The company launched in July and provides Internet booking capability for 2,000 aircraft from 800 charter operators flying to and from 10 times as many airports as commercial carriers.
"Air charter is a fragmented industry, and there had been no one central source that could quickly provide information to travelers and agents about when it makes sense to charter, which aircraft type would fit their needs and which airports they could travel to," said David McCown, AirCharter.com's manager and vice president of business development. "We've created the site to be user friendly and to mimic the GDSs."
AirCharter.com currently caters to about 100 repeat customers, the majority of which are corporations. Those clients typically are smaller companies without negotiated discounts from the majors, though Fortune 500 companies have used the system when their own fleet was inaccessible or inappropriate for the trip.
McCown said the cost of six passengers flying normal business class is about the same as, if not more than, the cost of a charter.
Annette Nevin, director of travel services at Phoenix-based AvNet, said she recently used AirCharter.com for senior executives traveling around Europe. "It turned out to be a good solution and we would definitely use it again for charters," Nevin said. AvNet, a provider of hardware and software for electronic distribution systems with a U.S. booked air volume of nearly $9 million, recently acquired a corporate jet. However, Nevin said that AirCharter.com still would be of value for international trips. "When you consider putting four or five people on a Learjet, it's like traveling first class, and comes pretty close in terms of costs."
Payment of the regular retail prices can be done through a credit card or an established account. AirCharter.com buys the space and time from the operator at wholesale prices, retaining the difference. McCown said that AirCharter.com has been able to secure volume discounting with certain operators.
The site (www.aircharter.com) features Fast Quote, which provides immediate pricing and aircraft information, a search engine to pinpoint suitable aircraft for a trip, an airport locator and a link to EventSource for meeting planners. AirCharter.com even established its own frequent flyer program.
Washington-based SkyJet.com also acts as an intermediary between customers and suppliers, and has seen explosive growth this year. June sales figures equaled all sales between January and May, and October's equaled all sales between June and September. As a result, the company has built up its direct sales team and continues to market to travel agencies and corporate travel departments. "All of this is building to the creation of an on-demand airline," said Skyjet.com founder and CEO Trevor Cornwell. Similar to AirCharter.com, Skyjet.com gets a discounted rate off retail prices from operators--essentially a 5 percent commission--and then charges customers the regular retail price. A credit card is used for payment. Cornwell said the value-add is an assurance of service consistency and availability, noting that commercial airlines have very high load factors which "fray the nerves" of traveler and supplier alike.
"We can show the charter operators that we are generating X amount of business and therefore look for further discounting that would be passed along to the customer. In time, we will become a price maker," Cornwell added.
The online facilitator has forged a few partnerships with other travel suppliers. For example, 'Home-To-Jet' ground transportation is provided by BostonCoach and is included in the charter price. Meanwhile, a Sabre link has been developed to include Skyjet.com.
Users of the Skyjet.com Web site (www.skyjet.com) also can use mapping functionality from MapQuest. A relationship with Four Seasons is being integrated and a new partnership with a safety information provider is in the final stages of negotiations. Skyjet.com also is considering fostering flexible ownership programs or time shares. "All of this makes what had been an entirely inefficient process into an efficient one," Cornwell said. "It adds a lot of value by enabling travel planners to compare prices and different operators in the same environment.